Here’s another Halloween bake. This sandwich bread is just like most other enriched sandwich breads. Soft, bouncy, slightly sweet, easy to cut, and perfect for any topping. The only difference here is the colour and the design.
The orange part of the swirl is the result of the addition of baked sweet potatoes instead of water in the dough. The black part is coloured with activated charcoal. Taste wise there is nothing crazy about this bread. It’s slightly sweet, and you can kind of taste the sweet potato if you know it’s in there. Charcoal has no taste at all.
Activated charcoal was not designed to be a food colouring. It is commonly used for medical purposes to alleviate food poisoning or in the treatment of drug overdoses. It is perfectly safe to consume and will not have any effect on most people.
If you are on certain types of medication, then you should consult a doctor about it because activated charcoal may prevent some medication from being absorbed by the stomach.
This loaf will fit perfectly in a 2lb (900g) Pullman tin. Mine measures at 9in (23cm) long, 4in (10cm) wide, and 4in (10cm) deep. If you want to use a regular 2lb tin, then you should reduce all the ingredients by 20%.
You can add the remaining egg whites to the charcoal dough in exchange for an equal amount of water. I used them for something else.
Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.
Ingredients
For the sweet potato dough –
230g (8.1oz) baked and mashed sweet potato
1 egg yolk
25g (0.9oz) soft butter
5g (0.17oz) salt
3g (0.1oz) instant dry yeast or 3.6g (0.12oz) active dry yeast or 9g (0.31oz) fresh yeast
20g (0.7oz) sugar
250g (8.8oz) white bread flour
For the charcoal dough –
130g (4.6oz) water
1 egg yolk
25g (0.9oz) soft butter
5g (0.17oz) salt
3g (0.1oz) instant dry yeast or 3.6g (0.12oz) active dry yeast or 9g (0.31oz) fresh yeast
5g (0.17oz) activated charcoal
20g (0.7oz) sugar
250g (8.8oz) white bread flour
Butter or oil for greasing the baking tin.
To learn more about no-knead bread dough temperature control click here.
The flour I use has a protein content of 13%. If your flour is weaker, then you may need to lower the hydration.
If you are using active dry yeast, then you may need to let it sit in the water for 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients or else it could take a lot longer to raise the dough.
If you are curious about why the dough contains butter, egg, and sugar, click the links to learn more about the effects those ingredients have on bread dough.
Method
- Cook the sweet potato. Peel and cut the potato in chunks. Place in a baking tray and cover with foil. Bake at 180C (355F) for 40 minutes. Mash the potato and leave to cool down completely.
- Make the doughs. Combine all ingredients except the flour in two separate bowls. Mix well. Add the flour and mix until there is no dry flour left. *Desired dough temperature 25C (77F). If your dough is warmer, then it will ferment more rapidly. If it is cooler, then it will take longer. Adjust fermentation time accordingly.
- Cover and ferment for 1 hour.
- Fold.
- Ferment for 1 more hour.
- Roll out the two doughs to large rectangles. Place one on top of the other and roll them up in a straight and even roll. The sweet potato dough is larger, so it is best suited for the outside of the roll.
- Place in a greased baking tin. Cover.
- Final proof 2 hours. During the final hour of fermentation pre-heat the oven to 180C (355F) fan on.
- Cover the tin with a lid if you are using a Pullman tin. Otherwise, you can glaze the loaf with egg or egg white or any other glaze you like.
- Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from the tin and bake for 10 more minutes.
Leave to cool down and tuck in!
Keep in mind that the conditions in each kitchen are different, so fermentation times may vary for you. It is up to the baker to control the bread and react accordingly.
Your oven may be different too, so your baking time may vary.
Watch The Video Here
